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Samsung Properly Open-Sources exFAT File-System

08-16-2013, 11:50 AM

Phoronix: Samsung Properly Open-Sources exFAT File-System

Back in June, Phoronix was the first to report of a native exFAT file-system implementation for Linux that appeared on GitHub. It later turned out that Samsung accidentally leaked their exFAT source code. The solution has now been corrected with Samsung formally open-sourcing their exFAT source code...

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Does this mean whoever uses this won't have to pay Microsoft for their own FAT patents anymore?

Dream on.

Microsoft still holds the exFAT patents. Samsung licensed them for their own use only. Im not surprised if Microsoft revokes Samsung's patent license for the exFAT driver, thus making it illegal for anybody to download and use Samsung's driver source code, since Samsung clearly did not get Microsoft's approval to open their driver.

plus im damn sure that whatever the licensing terms for the exFat patents are, royalty-free dissemination is definitely not one of them.

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Microsoft still holds the exFAT patents. Samsung licensed them for their own use only. Im not surprised if Microsoft revokes Samsung's patent license for the exFAT driver, thus making it illegal for anybody to download and use Samsung's driver source code.

exFAT is considered a standard-essential patent and thus must be licensed under "FRAND" ( fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory) terms, Samsung could sue Microsoft in the case it denied the license.

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exFAT is considered a standard-essential patent and thus must be licensed under "FRAND" ( fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory) terms, Samsung could sue Microsoft in the case it denied the license.

And Microsoft has every right to revoke the license if Samsung does things which are not permitted under the licensing terms they negotiated with MS over, whatever they may be.

Just like the Conservancy can bar organizations from distributing GPL-ed software for non-compliance, Microsoft can do the same with organizations that do not respect its licensing terms.

FRAND does not give the licensee the right to do whatever they want with it.